0
The maria on the moon have fewer craters compared to the highlands because they are made of younger, solidified lava flows that have covered and filled in older cratered regions. The volcanic activity that created the maria also played a role in erasing or masking the older impact craters.
Add your answer:
Earn +20 pts
Why are some areas of the moon smooth with no craters?
Smooth areas on the moon, known as lunar maria, were formed by ancient volcanic activity filling in large impact basins. These basins were created by asteroid impacts billions of years ago. The lava flows from volcanic activity created the smooth, dark basaltic plains we see today.
What are the characteristics of the moon?
The moon has many characteristics, but which are unique? well, there are quite a few!! - craters - no atmosphere - special layers and phases - canyons and mountains - aluminum and titanium crust - there are many moons in the solar system, not just one!!
How old are the moons craters?
The number of craters on the moon are too many to count. Approximately 300,000 craters with diameters of 1 km or more are visible from ground based telescopes. High-definition photographs from lunar probes reveal millions of craters. Extreme closeups show countless microscopic craters.
What are moon craters?
The word crater (meaning bowl-shaped) is applied to two different phenomena.On planets and moons, meteor craters are the circular depressions caused by the impacts of other objects, mainly smaller asteroids and meteoroids. They are prominent on the Moon and on the planet Mercury. Some objects hit Earth in the past, but only a few landmarks still exhibit their characteristic bowl shape.The other use is to describe a volcanic caldera, or inner depression within a volcano. Many dormant volcanoes have solidified craters in their peaks, some with lakes or glaciers.
Why do you see so few craters on the earth compared to the moon?
The Earth has fewer visible craters compared to the Moon because Earth's active geological processes such as erosion, plate tectonics, and volcanic activity continuously reshape its surface, gradually filling in or erasing impact craters. In contrast, the Moon does not have these processes, so craters remain preserved for much longer periods of time.
Why do craters contain maria?
Craters don't contain maria. 'Maria' (plural) are the large unbroken expanses that appear smooth, with no craters, or relatively few. 'Maria' means 'seas' ... at one time, they were thought to be oceans on the moon.
Why are there so few craters on the maria?
The maria are the craters. I believe it was Galileo who saw the dark spots on the moon and thought that they were seas, which is why he called them maria ("mar" being Latin for sea). Since then, advancements have been made in astronomy which have shown that the maria are not seas, but craters.
What are craters and maria?
Craters are bowl-shaped depressions on the surface of a planet or moon, typically caused by the impact of meteorites or asteroids. Maria, on the other hand, are large, dark, flat areas on the Moon's surface, mainly composed of basaltic lava flows that occurred billions of years ago.
Is it true or false that maria are larger than most craters?
False. Most craters on Earth are larger than Maria, which are large, dark, basaltic plains on the Moon. Craters can range in size from a few meters to hundreds of kilometers in diameter, making them generally larger than Maria.
Do craters cover most of the Earth?
No. Earth has relatively few impacts craters.
What are the bright areas surrounding the Maria on the moon?
mountainous crater regions and the light colored ray systems of a few impact craters
What made an impact on the moon?
Millions upon millions of meteors. Every crater that you see on the Moon is the result of a fairly large asteroid impact. And there are craters within craters within craters, down to a few feet across. Oh, and the big plains, the "maria"? That's where TRULY ENORMOUS asteroids hit, and turned half of the Moon molten from the heat.
Why do you see several impact craters on the earth but few on the moon?
There are relatively few craters identified on the surface of the Earth while there are thousands (millions) on the moon. It is hard to find one point on the moon that is not in one crater and there are craters in craters in craters. (See images in related link for Moon.) Obviously, the major reason behind this is that the craters that formed on the Earth eroded over time due to wind, rain and other natural factors which are nearly absent on the moon. Thus Earth's craters disappear over millions of years while the craters on the moon remain for billions of years. (The primary way a crater is made to disappear from the surface of the moon is by having another impact crater formed and the dust and debris from later impacts disturb or destroy or cover the original crater.)
What is on the surfaces of moon?
There are craters on the surface of the moon
How is the face of the moon that is towards earth different from the far side?
The near side of the Moon is the one we see; maria (seas), highlands, craters, and mountains. The far side is much different. The far side is more mountainous, with fewer obvious craters and very few plains or flat areas.
Why are some areas of the moon smooth with no craters?
Smooth areas on the moon, known as lunar maria, were formed by ancient volcanic activity filling in large impact basins. These basins were created by asteroid impacts billions of years ago. The lava flows from volcanic activity created the smooth, dark basaltic plains we see today.
How can you determine that a location on a planet or moon must have had recent geological activity?
There will be few impact craters.
